2: A little about myself, I am York. William Clark's servant, born into slavery on January 7, 1770. So yes I am African American, with chocolaty brown skin, black hair, and dark eyes. I have a strong, defined build and a deep, baritone voice, Clark and I have been together since our childhood in Clarksville, Indiana Territory, (opposite of Louisville). President Thomas Jefferson has arranged for a group of men to explore the newly purchased Western Land in search of plant and animal specimens, negotiation with Indian tribes, and, most importantly, a river that connects to the Pacific Ocean for trade purposes, all the while recording in journals and mapping the land. Mr. Clark was invited by Meriwether Lewis as co-captain of this expedition in June of 1803 by means of letter. When Clark agreed, I was bound to go with him, but I have treated like any other white man on this expedition -- gun and everything! | Introduction

4: William Clark | William Clark, my humble master and friend, was invited by Meriwether Lewis to share the role of commander in the Discovery Corp. Master Clark and Lewis met in the United States army in 1795. Lewis remembered his comrade's leadership skills, his ability to work together and respect all | educated individuals. Also, Clark's brilliant problem- solving and cartography skills surely did not go unnoticed. I am proud to say my master can effectively, efficiently solve and enforce any problem you throw at him, and he has this instinct and feel for the landscape, a generally amazing sense of direction. These traits in particular make him, in my opinion, an excellent commander for the corps and I hope the men will value and respect Clark as much as I do. | William Clark, my humble master and friend, was invited by Meriwether Lewis to share the role of commander in the Discovery Corp. Master Clark and Lewis met in the United States Army in 1795. Lewis remembered his comrade's leadership skills -- his ability to work together and respect all team members, even the less

5: Meriwether Lewis | Meriwether Lewis, my master's comrade from war, was born on August 18, 1774 on Locust Hill Albemarle County, Virginia. to Lucy Meriwether and William Lewis. His mother, Lucy was his father's cousin. Thomas Jefferson knew Lewis almost his entire life. His Father died of pneumonia in 1779. Lucy later married Captain John Marks in 1780. | Marks moved the entire family to Broad River Valley, Georgia, where Lewis quickly picked up on skills in hunting and fishing. In August 1794 Lewis enlisted as a minuteman to help stop the Whiskey Rebellion. When that ended he stayed with the Army under command of Daniel Morgan. Eventually, Lewis was chosen to co-lead and expedition to the western lands along with my Master Clark.

7: Presents for the Tribe | Master Clark and Lewis wanted to be friendly to all of the Native American tribes that we would encounter along the way and to peacefully present the idea of the new government. They brought several gifts for each tribe, such as: Pocket Mirrors Sewing needles Handkerchiefs Rolls of Tobacco Knives Glass Beads

9: Teton Sioux | The first Native American tribe we encountered was the Teton Sioux. Lewis informed me that they controlled the plains on both sides of the Missouri River. I noticed that they were a very hostile and ruthless group | of people. We tried to give them peace offerings, but they wanted more. As we were preparing to continue up the river, on September 25, 1804, the Teton Sioux lined up around the river bank heavily armed and demanded more gifts, which we could not afford to give away. After a long tense moment we granted the tribe more tobacco and set off after a few cautious days we were held back.

10: Arikara | In October we met with the Arikara, a tribe with a weakened population caused by a smallpox outbreak several years earlier. They were mostly consisting of friendly farmers, who raised corn, squash, tobacco, | and beans for both their own consumption and to trade with other tribes in the area, particularly the hostile Teton Sioux. The expedition stayed for about 5 days talking about trade and other tribes who we could stay the harsh winter with. We were pointed to the Mandan tribe upriver. The Akira have taken a particular liking to me in the meantime. I do not believe they have ever seen a "black man" before. They call me "Big Medicine" because of my skin color and big appearance. They tried to wipe my color off my skin. They were a nice tribe, but on October 13, we moved on.

11: Mandan | By October 24, 1804, we had reached the Mandan tribe. They lived in 2 large villages, one of the Western bank of the upper Missouri River and the other directly | North. They are respectful and friendly, giving us food and allowing us to stay the winter of 1804-1805. We build our winter shelter across the river from the villages. Mr. Clark and Lewis named this shelter Fort Mandan. Throughout the past winter, i Have noticed they are a very political, economic, and ceremonial tribe. The ceremonies that i have attended are a fun relaxing measure.As the corp was preparing for departure, we were offered | an intelligent Shoshoni-Mandan women named sacagawea. She had just had a baby boy with her husband Toussaint Charbonneaue, a French Fur Trader. We left the Mandans on April 6, 1805 with the new additions.

12: Sacagawea | A strong, young American-Indian women. I talked to her today as we walked. She is mysterious and keeps to her life stories to herself most days. But today she told me about how she was kidnapped by the Hidatsas when she was 10 and then sold to Toussaint Charbonneau, who took her as one of his many wives. She is an excellent addition working with her husband to guide us. Individually, she serves as a translator and it helps with tribe relations. As Mr. Clark says, "a woman with a party of men is a token of peace."

13: Fork in the River | The corp was warned about grizzly country before, but we had thought nothing of it for be had dealt with bears before and our guns were strong.But now that we have encountered them, no one is very keen on seeing them again. Those Grizzlies were huge! 3times the size of any bear I had ever seen! And it took many shots with our not so strong guns to bring one down. It is June 3, 1805 and we have come to a fork in the river. Both Lewis and Clark think the Southern Branch will lead to the Rockies, but the men disagree. I personally agree with Mr. Clark and Lewis because I know of his natural instincts with navigation. After scouting each branch for several miles lewis found that indeed the southern | branch was the correct option.

14: Around The Falls | On June 13, Lewis first saw the Great falls of Missouri which proved that we had chosen correctly. The falls were a magnificent sight--- around 80 feet tall and 900 feet wide. Mist pours over the edge creating lovely rainbows. We are carrying our heavy supplies over land around the falls. We have found 5 falls instead of the 1 described by the tribes. The estimated mile journey has turned out to be 13 long hard miles a months work. every 2 day we have to replace our moccasins from the jagged rocks, hard work, and prickly pears that scatter the ground. We have to be in constant look out for grizzlies and rattlesnakes. Also abrupt weather changes are common going from the scorching sun to violent storms with hail the size of chicken eggs! On July 15, 1805, we are all thrilled to have accomplished the falls.

15: Shoshoni | As we grew closer to the mountains looming in front of us, we realized we needed to borrow horses, preferably from Sacagawea's tribe the Shoshone, but first we have to find the skilled horsemen and hunters. On August 11, we spotted a Shoshoni hunter who led us to the tribe, and as luck would have it the chief turned out to be Sacagawea's long lost brother. This made trading alot easier. We traded guns (the tribe wished for guns to compete with neighboring tribes) with the Shoshone for the horses, supplies, and a guide through the mountain passage

16: Nez Perce | Halfway through th bitterroot crossing,on September 20, we met a group called the Nez Perce or pierced nose" in French. The tribe consists of about 6,000 people. Before we met them, our horses were near starvation and the men were quickly running out of food. Thanfully the Nez Perce have provided us with enough food to finish crossing the range. During our stay, we discussed trade and alliances. Clark says that they are "Stout likely men, handsom women, and verry dressey in their way." We entrusted our horses with the expert breeders and set off again in our simply made dugout canoes.

17: Clatsop | We finally broke out of the Bitterroots on December 7, and started off on the Clearwater River. On December 9, 1805, we met the skilled Clatsop Indians. There were about 400 Clatsop, spread out in three villages near the shore of the Pacific Ocean. They were known for their dugout canoes, which could carry up to 30 people through the rough coastal waters. WE were permitted to construct a fort near the villages to stay the winter. The captains named it Fort Clatsop. The Clatsops taught us where to find food throughout the winter.

18: Blackfeet | On July 27, 1806 we met a group of Indians with unusual black moccasins, which gave them the name Blackfeet. We were not expecting to | meet any other tribes on our trip, but we ran into eight Blackfeet warriors who took us back to the camp. They controlled a great amount of land. Lewis attempted to convert them to peace with the Americans, but after Lewis told them about the other tribes receiving weapons, the Blackfeet were angered, for they relied on the other tribes on being unarmed. In the night, a group called the Piegans tried to steal the Corp's weapon supply. This resulted in a small battle, where two Piegans were killed, this was the first bloodshed on the expedition.

19: Interesting Observations that have captured my Attention | ~ Lewis designed a collapsible canoe with iron frame for the expedition. It could be covered with animal skins and could carry one ton. The canoe weighed only 44 lbs and was named experiment. ~ On average each man consumes 9 pounds of meat daily. ~ On Day 99 of the journey Sgt. Floyd died of a burst appendix at the age of 22. So far he is only member to die.

20: Animals of the expedition Mr. Clark shared with me the following information of the discoveries of animals. | American Raven Black- Tailed Prairie Dog Blue Catfish Mountain Beaver

24: On March 23, 1806, we started for home. After re-crossing the Rocky Mountains we picked up our horses from the Nez-Perce, We separated into 2 groups to explore more land---Lewis went north on the Marias River and Clark by the Yellowstone River. We met again at the Missouri River. From there we stayed together, following the same path the rest of the way home. We reached St. Louis on September 23, 1806, two and a half years after we first started off on the Missouri River. We had traveled nearly 8,000 miles, discovering 173 new plants and 122 species and subspecies of animals, mapping the Western land, viewing amazing scenery, and recording it all in our journals to bring it back to you. So here is my contribution to the United States Of America, the story of our amazing journey--- from Misouri through the Rockies to the coast so many miles away, and back again. Many thanks to all the helpful souls along the way Faithfully, Ben York

25: Timeline of our Trip | January 18, 1803 President Jefferson sends a message to Congress asking for approval of an expedition to explore the Western part of the continent. Spring 1803 Lewis begins his training as the expedition's leader in Philadelphia. Summer 1803 In Pittsburgh, Lewis oversees construction of a keelboat, then picks up Mr. Clark and I along with other recruits as he travels down the Ohio River. May 14, 1804 We leave Camp Wood and begin our journey up the Missouri River.

26: August 20, 1804 Charles Floyd dies from a burst appendix, the only death in the Discovery Corp on the expedition. Early September 1804 We enter the Great Plains and see a large variety animals unknown in the eastern United States. September 25, 1804 First encounter with the Teton Sioux, where a battle is narrowly avoided. November 4, 1804 Lewis and Clark hire French-Canadian fur-trader Toussaint Charbonneau and his Shoshone wife, Sacagawea, to act as interpreters on the journey ahead. December 17, 1804 45 degrees below zero at Fort Mandan coldest temperature known. | Timeline Continued

27: February 11, 1805 Sacagawea's son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau is born with assistance from Lewis. May 16, 1805 One of our boats nearly overturns and Sacagawea with saves our most important possessions. June 1, 1805 Reaching an unknown fork in the Missouri we correctly determined the branch to take. June 13, 1805 Lewis reaches the Great Falls ofMissouri, where we begin the long tedious trek around the 5 cascades. August 12, 1805 Jefferson receives the shipment from Fort Mandan and we find the headwaters of the Missouri River, which leads us to the conclusion that there is no Northwest Passage.

28: August 17, 1805 We arrive at the Shoshone camp, where Sacagawea happily reunites with the chief, her long-lost brother, Cameahwait. September 11, 1805 We begin the steep climb into the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Mountains. This crossing covered more than 160 miles. November 7, 1805 Believing he sees the Pacific, Clark says, "Ocian in View! O the joy." we later found that it was only the widened estuary of the Columbia River. November 24, 1805 Having reached the Pacific, we take a vote on where to build their winter quarters. called Fort Clatsop. March 23, 1806 After the winter we set out for home. September 23, 1806 Having found an easier route across the country, we reach St. Louis nearly two and a half years after their journey began and we are acclaimed as national heroes.